Consider a salesperson. They make pitch after pitch, each one failing, a series of negative events. Being "pessimistic" does help identify the possibility that they are not selling effectively.
However, Being "optimistic" does not preclude change. The optimistic view is that each such event is driven by the prospective customer's choice (impersonal), is a stand-alone event (temporary), and is only a lost sale (specific).
The optimist is free to explore some options. For one thing, maybe they are selling to the wrong customers? Or perhaps their sales techniques don't fit those customers?
Since the optimist believes these are one-time events, the optimist believes it could go differently tomorrow. That doesn't mean it will magically go differently tomorrow! The optimist believes that they can make some changes and get different results tomorrow.
The pessimist believes that since they are permanently at fault, change is futile. The optimist believes that change is possible.
Now what about the idea that something is generally wrong with the optimist? For example, perhaps they don't listen in general, and this is why they are not selling. Well, "Stop being rude" is difficult to act on. "Listen more..." What does that mean exactly?
The optimist can drill down into specifics. What, specifically is going wrong? Ah, customers don't believe the product suits their needs. We can fix this, do more needs analysis in the qualifying portion of the sales process, and then write proposals in a "where-we-are-today, where=we-want-to-be, gap, how-the-product-forms-a-bridge" format.
So they fix listening in sales. And then they notice a problem in their personal relationships, and they fix listening there too. Lather, rinse, repeat. And perhaps they graduate to fixing a self-absorbption problem.
General problems need an accumulation of specific fixes to conquer, and learned optimism can help.
However, Being "optimistic" does not preclude change. The optimistic view is that each such event is driven by the prospective customer's choice (impersonal), is a stand-alone event (temporary), and is only a lost sale (specific).
The optimist is free to explore some options. For one thing, maybe they are selling to the wrong customers? Or perhaps their sales techniques don't fit those customers?
Since the optimist believes these are one-time events, the optimist believes it could go differently tomorrow. That doesn't mean it will magically go differently tomorrow! The optimist believes that they can make some changes and get different results tomorrow.
The pessimist believes that since they are permanently at fault, change is futile. The optimist believes that change is possible.
Now what about the idea that something is generally wrong with the optimist? For example, perhaps they don't listen in general, and this is why they are not selling. Well, "Stop being rude" is difficult to act on. "Listen more..." What does that mean exactly?
The optimist can drill down into specifics. What, specifically is going wrong? Ah, customers don't believe the product suits their needs. We can fix this, do more needs analysis in the qualifying portion of the sales process, and then write proposals in a "where-we-are-today, where=we-want-to-be, gap, how-the-product-forms-a-bridge" format.
So they fix listening in sales. And then they notice a problem in their personal relationships, and they fix listening there too. Lather, rinse, repeat. And perhaps they graduate to fixing a self-absorbption problem.
General problems need an accumulation of specific fixes to conquer, and learned optimism can help.